Island Life Magazine Ltd February/March 2009 | Page 104

life

FOOD & DRINK

GRANDAD - 1960's Harry Ross busy working
in the retail shops' "hayday" in the 1960's

Left: Sally Gallagher, Dani Herbert, Linda Humber, Helen Coleman,
Sarah Lewis & Sarah Craft

Family firm goes
from strength to strength
From a small butchers shop in Ryde High
Street, in 1947, Harry S Ross employed
two butchers. This family firm has now
progressed into its third generation in
the butchery trade and employs over 40
members of staff during the peak season.
Despite how successfully the business has
progressed and the range of products it now
stocks, the heart and soul of the business
still remains in the butchery department. This
part alone employs seven full time butchers
which are managed by John Moorhouse,
who has been in the trade for over 30 years.
Now as things have progressed, to help
run the overall business, Cory Williams,
who started with Medina Foodservice as
a temporary delivery driver in 2007, has
worked his way up to be the Operations
Manager.
The team of six office ladies are here to
help and advise you with your day to day
requirements. Pictured above from left: Sally
Gallagher, Dani Herbert, Linda Humber,
Helen Coleman, Sarah Lewis & Sarah Craft

The team of delivery drivers
and storemen.

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The team of delivery drivers and store
men are here to deliver the quality every
caterer needs. Good service is the key to
their success and one long standing crew
member has been with Medina Foodservice
for twenty two years.
For 2009 they have taken on additional
premises. In this there is a one hundred
pallet ambient store and a brand new eighty
pallet freezer store. This will help them to
stock a far greater range of products and
in turn help them to have a greater buying
power which is what enables them to be
able to offer the keenest prices possible for
the products.
They are also now delivering to Hampshire
and the New Forest up to five days per
week. Since starting this, they are now
able to source fresh & speciality produce
that previously they could not offer. To help
accommodate the extra deliveries, they have
a brand new 7.5 tonne dual temperature
lorry, arriving before Easter.
What makes them strong in their market

2009 Still going strong, the seven butchers
headed by John Moorhouse on the far right

place, is their dedicated sales team and
they have now added another two sales
representatives to help with customer
awareness, menu planning, prices and
costing and most importantly that we are
still delivering the quality and service that
our customers expect.
Managing Director Steve Ross said,
“Due to the credit crunch period we are
now in, we are always looking for new ways
and ideas to improve what our customers
require. At the beginning of 2008, most
public houses had Fillet steak on their
menus. Now, it is too expensive for most
caterers to be able to sell it and get a decent
return, so I’m afraid that meal has gone
back to the days of being treated as a luxury.
Everyone loves to eat out and to help our
customers and maintain our business in
these troubled times, we have to come up
with products that suit what our customers
need. With this in mind, there is no better
reason than to go to the Medina Foodservice
Food Exhibition!”

OPERATIONS MANAGER Cory Williams

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